Cersaie 2022: The 1970s are Back

The 39th Cersaie, the International Exhibition of Ceramic Tile and Bathroom Furnishings, took place in Bologna from 24 – 30 September 2022. Crowded corridors and stands in the 15 fully occupied trade-fair halls were reminiscent of pre-COVID times.

Anything and everything

This year’s event offered anything and everything: any number of original to reinterpreted looks for looks resembling marble, wood and stone; hybrid materials and textures; botanical prints; flowers and stripes reminiscent of the 1970s; patterns and colours ranging from gaudy to muted, from colourful to minimalistic, from wild to restrained and from glossy to mat.

Nature is now considered a retro trend. The colour of the year is violet, interspersed with many rust-inspired styles and shades of gold. There are classical motifs, not to mention tranquil, bright and reduced designs. Often, the tiles cannot be distinguished either visually or haptically from wallpaper. The formats range from tiny mosaics to large-scale slabs.

Leitmotif: sustainability

One leitmotif – not only of the Italian hosts – that prevailed throughout the exhibition and its framework program and was put forward by many concrete architectural references and guests such as Mario Botta, is an increased commitment to sustainability. Manufacturers like Iris are already working on hydrogen-based production solutions. At the same time, there is hope that these efforts will not be thwarted by the drastic consequences of the crisis on the markets for raw materials and energy.

© Laminam

Facts and figures

At 624, the number of exhibitors remained nearly constant (2021: 623). Of these, 354 came from the ceramic-tile industry – 88 from bathroom furnishings and 182 from the areas of installation, raw materials, new surfaces and service. The number of international specialist visitors rose significantly again: 44,215 visitors (2021: 24,000) came from abroad, which corresponds to 48.4 per cent of the total 91,296 visitors (2021: 62,000). Next year’s dates have been fixed: the 40th Cersaie will take place from 25 – 29 September 2023.